By Fonda Bock, USAREC “How many of you in this room are sex offenders? Raise your hand.” That question was posed to the hundreds of leaders in U.S. Army Recruiting Command – brigade and battalion commanders, command sergeants major, and USAREC headquarters staff. Russell Strand was doing the asking. The Chief of U.S. Army Military Police School, Behavioral Sciences Education & Training Division was giving a presentation to the Annual Leaders Training Conference at Fort Knox, Ky. No one raised their hand in response to the question, but it did generate a few laughs. After making light of the lack of response for a moment, Strand continued his presentation on sexual assault and prevention. “I’ve given this presentation to 45,000 people since June and no one has ever raised their hand in response to that question. Why do you think that is?” he said. “Because sex offenders lie. And it’s highly likely that in this room right now, there are at least one or two or three sex offenders. I could be wrong, but statistics say I’m not. But I can guarantee you, that everyone in this room has at least one sex offender in their unit or that you know someone who is a perpetrator; you’re just not aware of their hidden life.” The vast majority of people in the Army and in recruiting - 95 percent - are good people who recruit with integrity. But then there’s that 5 percent, said Strand. “They are an insider threat; they are the Army’s worst enemy.” According to Strand, research has proven that there are more sex offenders in the military than on the outside because, “We attract them,” said Strand. “Once they walk through our doors they have instant credibility. “We also attract a steady stream of victims,” said Strand, “people who maybe have low confidence or self esteem, or who maybe have been in a little bit a trouble, but who now want to turn their lives around, become stronger, build confidence and make something of themselves.” Sex offenders pick vulnerable victims said Strand, because when they make an accusation against the offender, they appear less credible. “Every year in the Army alone there are more than 3,000 reports of sexual assault, of which the vast majority are actual assaults. About 30 percent of the serious CID cases we have involve leaders,” said Strand. There’s no specific profile of a sex offender, he added. They are sometimes the last person you’d suspect. Because they often have stellar accomplishments and achievements, they appear credible. Although offenders don’t fit into one specific profile, those in the Army share some common statistics: Offenders of sexual assault, those who use force, threats or abuse of power are: - 98.7 percent are male, 26 years old - Regular Army, Staff Sgt., MOS is evenly distributed - Alcohol or drugs use occur in 17.3 percent of cases - 56 percent of victims were prospects who expressed an interest in enlisting Offenders of sexual harassment, which entails verbal, non verbal or physical contact of a sexual nature are an average age of 35. Offenders of sexual misconduct where a consensual sexual act occurred are: - 97.3 percent male, 28 years old - Regular Army, Staff Sgt., DA select recruiters - Alcohol or drugs used in 11.4 percent of cases - 71.5 percent of victims were prospects who’s expressed an interest in enlisting in the Army Strand also offered these nationwide statistics: - Sex offenders have only a 3 percent chance of being caught. - 561 offenders admitted to more than 195,000 cases of assault. - 44 percent of women have been a victim of rape or attempted rape. - Only about 5 percent of rapists will ever spend a day in jail. - There are a higher percentage of female victims in the Army, but in terms of numbers, there are more male victims of assault. Only about 1 percent of men report the assault compared to about 30-40 percent of women, and it takes a man about 22 years to come forward. - While only about 2 percent of rape cases go to trial in the civilian sector, the vast majority in the military go to trial. - Only about 35 percent of perpetrators are victims of sexual assault themselves, although 100 percent claim to be. The good news, said Strand, is the Army has made some progress in addressing this problem. Reports of sexual assault have increased by 60 percent, which means more people are coming forward. And while it’s impossible to screen out all sex offenders, Strand recommends USAREC take the following actions. - Take all reports of sex assault and behavior seriously regardless of perceived reputation and credibility of both the victim and suspect. - Take sexual harassment seriously. The vast majority of people who sexually harass other people want to have sex with them. It’s not a game, the perpetrator was not just pretending, it was a test. Sexual harassment is a pre-crime, a test how the victim, organization and leadership will react, and most of the time the act is committed secretly or in private. - Take appropriate actions concerning all reports of misconduct in recruiting behavior, to include domestic abuse. - Screen personnel in key positions; do complete background checks. - If you think something doesn’t look or sound right, speak up; say something, be that squeaky wheel, do something about it.